Not just the young and stupid. As an AA sponsor I’ve helped many people with addictions beyond just alcohol. With the crack down on painkillers many people find heroin a much cheaper source and easier to obtain than prescription meds. I was asked to speak at a recovery center down on South Padre Island about a month and a half ago. Sitting before me were alcoholic’s and drug addicts, yes some were young but half were 40 and above. Of the 40 plus men sitting there only 10 were there for alcohol treatment, Meth, Heroin and prescription drugs were the main problem. Many of the older men were professional’s in their trade. Since my experience is with alcohol recovery I choose the 5 oldest men there to council for two days. To my surprise all were heroin addicts, one was a professional boxer, one a charter captain, one a celebrity and the other two were business owners. Each of these men told pretty much the same story, injuries from the past got them addicted to pain meds. When they could no longer get the meds they wanted/needed they eventually went to a cheaper more available source which was heroin. The service and care provided at this particular center runs about 50,000 for a 30 day stay and another 37,000 for each additional month with 30, 60 and 90 day stays being the most common.
Ummmm... injuries did NOT get them addicted.
The spirits they submitted to, did. The injuries they suffered were the occasion of meeting a temptation. Maybe they were a bit self pitying in the wake of what transpired, rather than continuing to look forward to the best health possible in the face of the challenges.
By the way, 12-step programs as we know them today are a bowdlerization of what Alcoholics Anonymous started up with as an explicit concentration upon the Lord Jesus Christ. It has always seemed to me that a higher power, for me to submit to it, needs to show its credibility. It cannot be a puppet at my control.
Let’s not compartmentalize away human responsibility.